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I just had to share this really cute tutorial I found today on SwirlyThoughts. She shows how to make padded envelopes using reclaimed materials.
It is such a wonderful idea. So many possibilities!
I have been been doing a lot of playing around with magazines lately. I saved a rather large stash from the trash at work last week. So as you can imagine there has been lots of cutting, folding, rolling and gluing (non-toxic) going on. Needless to say, it has been an interesting challenge coming up with different ways to reuse them all.
For the most part I have had great luck in making jewelry out of them. Earrings, bracelets and beads have all been fun. I’ll post about them later though.
Today however, I am very pleased with a tea wallet that I made. I love my tea, and always have a bag or two in my purse or pocket. Christy’s Creations had a great Tea Wallet Tutorial that I thought might be a fun way to reuse the magazines. The image I chose was a little small, but I love how it came out.
Surprisingly durable and very cute. I have been taking it to work all week, and absolutely love it.
I came across this great utensil holder project made from paper bags, over at Machine d’amour.
All you need is a paper bag, some vinyl and a sewing machine. It is really quite simple. Check out her instructions here.
This would also work great with magazine pages and left over paper scraps.
I have some extra vinyl laying around, maybe the girls and I will make some pretty placemats for when it’s warm enough to eat outside again. :)
We are ready for Valentine’s Day!
Jade and I made some very cute Valentine Fortune Cookies for her to hand out in class. Each with a fortune and a chocolate heart. She insisted on adding lucky numbers, as it is not a real fortune cookie with out them. She had a hard time deciding between counting by 2’s or counting by 5’s. In the end she decided on using the date.
She also had to make a special Valentine for a secret pal in class. Her secret pal turned out to be a boy, so she tried to make it not girly.
Check out the how to we found here. The only changes we made were to use foam sheets instead of felt (a better texture), and hot glue as we had trouble with regular.
All and all, a really cute and simple project.
Hope your V-Day is a Happy one!!!
While online last night I ran across a post by AlteredFantasy that I wanted to share. It is a DIY picture frame made from recycled shoebox lids. They are really simple to make, and the results are quite beautiful. 
You can check out the instructions here, and view some of her other projects.
Another fun project would be to cover with plain paper and use as mini canvases, or cover with your child’s art to make a personal masterpiece.
I am excited to get started. Happy Day:)
I found a craft very similar to this online, where they used 2 pouches to make a coin purse.
What you need: 
Capri Sun or similar, empty and clean (slice through the bottom to clean out.)
Velcro
Sewing Machine (unless you really want to do this by hand)
To start, sew velcro across the top on the back side of the pouch. Then add the other strip across the bottom on the front side.
Fold up the bottom. Sew around the edge and you are done. Easy!
I thought it would be neat to try and Decopodge on the back side of one. I used a piece of colored tissue paper from my daughter’s birthday present.
Just glue it onto the back. When it drys just sew it together.
I really like the way they turned out. Perfect for lunch money and spare change. They would also be cute to personilize. I am going to make one for my sisters gift card.
Happy Birthday m4m4b34r!!!!
I woke up this morning to my new Photojojo Newsletter in my inbox. Every week they send interesting articles on photography and NO SPAM! :) I have to say this is one of the few newsletters that I really enjoy receiving. This morning the article was 10 Tips for Being a Greener Photographer.
The one that really stood out was donating your old camera. I’ve heard a lot about donating your phones but this was new to me. They linked to a great site and a great cause, New Orleans Kid Camera Project. Check out their Mission Statement in the About Us, this is definitely something I wouldn’t mind getting behind.
Another tip was reusing your old film containers for arts and crafts or other small things. I’ve done this before and film containers are great, but please do not use them for kids snacks because there might be trace chemicals left from the film.
You can sign up for the newsletter on the Photojojo Site or click below to check out some of my favorite old newsletters. Happy Shooting!
Make a Flash Photo Flipbook in Just 15 Minutes!
It’s Photoshop. On the Web. From Adobe. (p.s. It’s pretty great.)
Shoot to Sell: Taking Better Photos for eBay, Etsy & Instructables
